freecia

7/11 ATMs are able to withdraw in multiples of 1,000 yen if you want a little bit of cash for your layover. There are 7/11 ATMs inside Haneda International. Locator: https://pkg.navitime.co.jp/sevenbank/?lang=en You can go cashless on a shorter Tokyo layover if you get lucky with locker availability and don't mind eating at a JR station or chain. I'd probably just pull out 1,000 - 2,000 at HND in case I'm unlucky and spend the rest on lunch or at NRT on omiyage.

It really is YMMV. Some restaurants are cash only. Independent ramen shops and such where you pre-pay via vending machine are often cash only. Some casual restaurant chains accept Suica and eateries in a JR station usually accept IC, esp. bigger city places. I usually check tabelog restaurant reviews which shows if they accept CC and/or IC, plus (quasi)smoking/non-smoking. 100 yen shops outside major tourist areas may be cash only.

Some castles, gardens, and such accept IC payment for entrance fees these days which is really convenient.

I save 100 yen coins for lockers, hotel coin laundry, vending machines, and attraction entries. I haven't come across any hotel washer/dryers which accept IC, yet, but I did see some contactless payment laundromats on a NobuRingo's Japanese YT channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCR...i5r5rTQ/videos Smaller than 100 yen increment change - I try to get rid of it at supermarket self-checkouts, on smaller city bus rides (not all IC is equal nationally for buses & trams), or perhaps I'll throw some onto a spare IC card in 10 yen increments https://matcha-jp.com/en/1981. You can also recharge mobile suica with cash at JR East kiosks and 7/11 ATM, though I personally haven't tried loading mobile suica with spare change at a newer Tokyo metro kiosk with IC receptacle instead of IC card reader.

rustykettel

lsquare

Thanks for the info and I've been to Haneda before. There is a 7/11 ATM just as I picked up my luggage and left the arrival area.

I think I know what you mean. On my last trip to Tokyo, I've been to a bunch of restaurants where I can only order from a vending machine. No where does it say I can use Suica or Pasmo. It was cash only.

That website will definitely come in handy. I would prefer to go to places that's not cash only.

Also, what does IC stand for? I see that being used a lot and I know it refers to the card (Suica/Pasmo)

Is it possible to reload mobile Suica at the 7/11 store or I have to use the ATM? The problem is that there might be any English menus and I'll get confused, but that's an awesome idea. Can I use any coin denomination to reload? That would be an awesome way to get rid of my Japanese coins.

I wonder why Suica acceptance isn't that high in Tokyo? Is it because of the fees the merchants have to pay?

lsquare

But Starbucks accept credit card right? I don't think I've seen a Starbucks anywhere that doesn't accept credit cards or was cash only. Maybe 30 years ago, but I can't imagine there would be one today. If one does exist, I'm curious where this store is.

paperwastage

Ic = integrated circuit, just a technical way to describe it

​https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_circuit

You typically need to find a standalone suica machine (or 7/11) to refill your mobile suica. Those machines just have a suica reader where you place/tap yournphone- other machines require you to insert your suica (like an atm)

With the standalone machines, you can just dump your coin purse and pick up the rejected coins at the end. Very easy,don't need to insert coins one by one like a vending machine

rustykettel

Yes! Sorry, didn't mean to imply Starbucks wouldn't take a credit card, just that they didn't take Suica.

Although in the past I did run into a situation where certain credit cards (BoA Visa cards) apparently wouldn't work with certain card readers and would come back as declined, though this wasn't at a Starbucks. This was ~2017 and happened at several places but couldn't figure out why as there wasn't any notification from BoA like they usually do if it's stopped for fraud. I just used another card and didn't investigate further.

lsquare

I don't recalled seeing any of these machines, but I wouldn't know any better. I did learned how to reload my Pasmo with the machine, which meant placing my Pasmo on the reader while I inserted cash. So with the phone, I wouldn't place my phone on the mat, but just tap it to confirm it? Are there English menus? Easy to use? I have to say, Japan is really not that different from Korea and China (except HK). It's still kind of hard to get around in English.

lsquare

So does Tokyo have any plan to further expand Suica usage? Seems like Singapore is eager to copy HK and grow its cashless transactions. The Singaporean PM even went on social media to asking for ideas on how to achieve that. The Singaporean PM cited HK as an example and unless I'm mistaken, even mentioned Japan.

I'll be travelling around Japan and wondering if mobile Suica can be used in Osaka and Kyoto?

freecia

Supermarkets & combini like MaxValue staffed checkout can also charge Suica at the register. Evidently MaxValue will accept 1 and 5 yen coins https://shotalab.com/suica-coin-charge/

I don't believe 7Bank ATMs accept change, just bills?
JP Post ATMs allow coin withdraw and deposit? https://nomad-saving.com/59333/

PocketChange kiosks accept foreign currencies https://www.pocket-change.jp/en/voucher-list/ and have machines at HND, NRT, KIX, NGO https://www.pocket-change.jp/en/where-to-find/ I'll have to check it out next time I see one. It'd be an unusual way to add cash to a WePay account without a Chinese bank account or trusted friend.

rustykettel

Yes, now that IC card systems are mostly (all? can't remember if there are any hold outs besides Okinawa) integrated, you can use Mobile Suica in Kansai and elsewhere just like Tokyo.

jib71

It appears that there are unintegrated card systems in Okinawa (until 2020), Utsunomiya, Toyama, Asahikawa and northern Hokkaido, Toyama, and Kagoshima. A few railway lines but mostly bus companies.
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/交通系ICカード全国相互利用サービス

EDIT: ... and Itami.

bocastephen

The last couple times I was in Tokyo, I never took out cash - I was using a combination of mobile SUICA and my credit cards the entire visit.

freecia

Are IC (not Acure touch screen) vending machines mostly compatible these days? I remember suica being rejected at a drink machine in April 2018 along the Kotoden line in Takamatsu but Kotoden was suica compatible since March 2018 Using your IC card to take the Kotoden train in Takamatsu | Life Takamatsu?

I'm going to start trying to tap whatever is there if this holds true for others which would be handy as I'm usually going through the inaka (there's JR East stations without suica gates/tap points - cash only and manned at certain hours). Don't make me look like the kid who thinks all screens are touch screens and/or everything has a voice assistant.

jib71

The pink area in the center of the graphic that I linked to in my last post indicates the systems that are integrated for e-money (i.e. transactions other than transit fares). Perhaps that's why your card could allow you to take the Kotoden train but couldn't be debited for a product purchase in a machine.

socalgecko

I had to wipe my phone recently and during the process of adding back all my payment cards to my wallet, Apple showed the right balance on my Suica card on the "Add cards" screen. However, once the card was added, the balance was 0. It shows as 0 in the app as well. Has this happened to anyone else? I've done all the signing out and signing back in, deleting and trying again, sacrificing a goat, etc. Since I'm not currently in Japan, heading to a station and putting it in service mode isn't an option. I'm more just curious if anyone else has had this experience.